Abstract
The transportation of nuclear materials is on the increase. Although nuclear shipments are only a very small fraction of the Nation’s hazardous materials shipments, they attract a great deal of public attention. Shipments of spent nuclear fuel and nuclear wastes are a particular concern.
One of the many fears that people have about nuclear energy is the possibility that a nuclear shipment might somehow go awry and cause a serious public hazard. Primarily, they are worried that a shipment of spent reactor fuel or highly radioactive waste could be involved in a serious rail or highway accident and dump its contents all over the countryside.
Is that really possible? How safe are those shipments? How many are there? What do they look like? Are the packages tested? These and other questions are answered in this paper. Since public risk is the product of the consequences of an accident and its probability, both aspects are presented so that each of us can make up his own mind whether the risk from nuclear shipments is acceptable.
Recommended Citation
Brobst, William A., "Are Nuclear Shipments Really Safe?" (1974). UMR-MEC Conference on Energy / UMR-DNR Conference on Energy. 7, pp. 21-28.
https://scholarsmine.mst.edu/umr-mec/7
Meeting Name
1st UMR-MEC Conference on Energy Resources (1974: Apr. 24-26, Rolla, MO)
Document Type
Article - Conference proceedings
Session
Nuclear Energy
Document Version
Final Version
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 1974 University of Missouri--Rolla, All rights reserved.
Publication Date
26 Apr 1974
